Browns 24, Ravens 18: Browns end woes against Ravens

Davone Bess eludes the Ravens' Lardarius Webb to score on a Jason Campbell pass in the second quarter of the Browns game against the Ravens Sunday at FirstEnergy Stadium.

Jason Campbell was not part of the 11 games of anguish the Browns experienced playing the Ravens since 2007. He did not have to be to know what hung in the balance on Sunday.
Campbell, playing with a rib injury most of the game, threw three touchdown passes and a critical fourth-down pass with 3 minutes, 12 seconds to play to carry the Browns past the Ravens, 24-18, on a crisp, chilly autumn afternoon at FirstEnergy Stadium.
The Browns (4-5)- are the only team in the AFC North to win this weekend. They head into the bye feeling good about themselves and believe they are back in the division race.
“I don’t know if you can call it a rivalry when you lose to a team 11 times in a row,” left tackle Joe Thomas said. “This was a great win for our team. We played hard for four quarters in all three phases.”

The Browns hadn’t beaten the Ravens since Nov. 18, 2007, when Phil Dawson kicked a field goal in overtime to win, 33-30. Campbell was in his third year with the Redskins at the time.
Campbell was on the Cleveland sideline in Baltimore on Sept. 15 when the Browns wasted a 6-0 lead and lost, 14-6. He watched Brandon Weeden fail to solve the Ravens defense as the misery against the franchise that once played in Cleveland was extended.
For a while, it seemed Weeden would be in control of the Browns’ fate again on Sunday.
Campbell got on the board first with a touchdown drive on the Browns second possession. He completed a pass for 32 yards to Greg Little that Little had to jump over two defenders to catch, and then two plays later, hit Josh Gordon on a post for 27 yards.
The drive bogged down at the Baltimore 1.
On fourth-and-goal, with the game scoreless, Coach Rob Chudzinski decided to go for it. Campbell threw a touchdown pass to Davone Bess just across the goal line on the right side. Lardarius Webb slammed into Bess’ back, but Bess held on.
The catch was redemption for Bess, who dropped three passes last week, but he was just getting started. He caught his second touchdown pass of the game in the second quarter and a critical pass on fourth down while the Browns were playing keep-away in the fourth quarter.
Campbell almost did not get the chance to throw the second touchdown pass and fourth-down pass to Bess.
With 2:11 left in the first quarter, Ravens 340-pound nose tackle Haloti Ngata landed on Campbell. The football was between the ground and Campbell’s right side.
Campbell left the game with a rib injury. Weeden finished the series without getting a first down. When the Browns got the ball back, Campbell was back in the huddle and the crowd of 71,513 cheered.
“They would have to drag me out of the game,” Campbell said. “I wanted to stay out there with those guys and keep fighting. We talked all week about needing to get this win. I just thought the guys on both sides of the ball fought extremely hard.”
Campbell’s first drive back from the rib injury resulted in the second touchdown pass to Bess. The play covered 20 yards. Bess caught the ball around the 12, faked out Webb and then ran to the right side of the end zone for a 14-3 Browns lead.
The Ravens cut the lead to 14-10 with nine seconds to play in the first half on a 19-yard pass from Joe Flacco to Marlon Brown.
Campbell found Gary Barnidge on a 4-yard touchdown pass with 5:11 left to push the lead back to 11, 21-10, but with 12:09 to play, Flacco hit Brown for 7 yards and then a two-point conversion to slice the lead to 21-18.
Instead of collapsing again, the Browns defense held the next time the Ravens had the ball and forced a punt on fourth-and-4 from the Baltimore 46 with 6:50 left. A 1-yard sack by Jabaal Sheard on third down ended the drive.
Ravens coach John Harbaugh left it up to his defense. The Browns responded by milking 6:30 off the clock. The biggest play of the drive — the biggest of the game, Campbell said — was a pass to Bess for 3 yards on fourth-and-1 from the Ravens 43. Only 14 seconds remained when Billy Cundiff kicked a 22-yard field goal.
“It was a huge play, probably the biggest of the game,” Campbell said. “It was a play we were trying to hit the running back. I’m not even sure I called the right play.”
The result was all that mattered. The Browns held onto the ball for seven more plays on the 15-play drive.